A river city of politics and commerce, Sacramento is spiritually closer to Chicago than it is to San Francisco or Los Angeles. The feeling here is friendlier in the Midwest than in free-spirited California. Still, this fast-growing city of 490,000 (with a regional metropolitan population of 2.6 million) is quite sophisticated, surprisingly gay-friendly, and quite picturesque. Sacramento is an ideal hub for exploring Northern California. It’s a two-hour drive from Lake Tahoe, Yosemite, Gold Country, Wine Country, Russian River, and San Francisco.
Seasons
Sacramento enjoys a moderate climate, generally pleasant throughout the year, although summers can produce a warm but dry climate, and winter sees rains; it is a climate not very different from the Mediterranean. Average high-low temperatures are 55F / 41F in January, 74F / 50F in April, 94F / 61F in July, and 79F / 54F in October. Average rainfall is 3 to 4 inches / month. in winter, an inch or less from spring to early fall, and 2 to 3 inches in late fall.
The location
Sacramento was established in 1839 in a fertile agrarian valley (elevation 17 feet), at the confluence of two rivers, the American and the Sacramento. It is at the base that the region became famous during the gold rush of the mid-19th century, which began just 30 miles east, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. This city, about 90 miles northeast of San Francisco, was named the state capital of California in 1854. The terrain in Sacramento is mostly flat and the surrounding region, while surrounded by fast-growing suburbs, is green and verdant. .
Driving distances
Driving distances to Sacramento from highlights and points of interest include:
- City of Amador / Jackson Gold Country: 45 miles (1 hour)
- Lake Tahoe: 100 miles (2 to 2.5 hours)
- Los Angeles: 385 miles (5.5 to 6 hours)
- Monterrey: 180 miles (3 hours)
- Napa Wine Country: 60 miles (1 hour)
- Point Reyes National Seashore: 100 miles (90 min)
- Portland, OR: 580 miles (8 to 9 hours)
- Reno, Nev. : 130 miles (2 hours)
- Russian River Resort area: 115 miles (2 hours)
- San Francisco: 90 miles (1.5 hours)
- San José: 115 miles (90 min)
- Sequoia / Kings Canyon National Park: 270 miles (5 hours)
- Santa Rosa / Sonoma Wine Country: 95 miles (90 min)
- Yosemite National Park: 170 miles (3 hours)
Flying to Sacramento
The compact, modern, and clean Sacramento International Airport is just a 15-minute drive or taxi northwest of the city center and is served by most major domestic airlines, with frequent nonstop service to most West Coast cities, as well as Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Guadalajara, Honolulu, Houston, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, DC and others.
It can be relatively cheap to fly here thanks to the service provided by value carriers like JetBlue and Southwest Airlines.
Things to see and do in Sacramento
The city’s biggest tourist draw is the kitschy but festive old Sacramento, a 28-acre state park from the Gold Rush period on the Sacramento River with museums (including the California State Railroad Museum), shops, and restaurants.
Top cultural attractions include the California State Capitol and Museum, an imposing 1874 building surrounded by a beautiful park; the fascinating Museum of California, which offers a rich overview of the state’s history; the acclaimed Crocker Museum of Art; and Sutter’s Fort State Historic Park, the restored adobe structure in which city founder John Sutter established his trading post.
Resources
You can better plan your Sacramento gay explorations by checking out some of the links below, including top progressive Sacramento news and reviews. You can get tourist information from the Sacramento Convention and Visitors Bureau, which has its own section dedicated to GLBT travel, and local information on Sacramento gay resources from the Sacramento Gay and Lesbian Community Center LAMBDA, as well as Out Sacramento.
Knowing Sacramento
California’s capital has a lot to offer, but it’s also attractive for its proximity: In a 1.5- to 3-hour drive you can reach dozens of great gay meccas and alluring vacation getaways, including San Francisco, the Russian River, the Napa and Sonoma Wine Country, Lake Tahoe, Gold Country and Yosemite National Park.
However, the city itself should not be overlooked, especially given the size and visibility of its gay community, which you may hear much less about than San Francisco or Los Angeles, but which is actually among the most organized and enthusiasts from the western United States. state
Visitors to the city will discover a lively and walkable center, packed with shops, restaurants, hotels and more, many of which are found along the pedestrianized K Street. In downtown Sacramento, you’ll also find the majestic capitol building and the wonderful gardens that surround it, and the historic Old Sacramento district along the Sacramento River.
Midtown y Lavender Heights
Midtown, which lies east of downtown, has few attractions, but is an ideal neighborhood for shopping, dining, and admiring numerous examples of Victorian, artisan, artisan, Spanish Revival, and Colonial Revival architecture. The section of Midtown between 20th and 29th streets and E and N streets is known to many as Lavender Heights, due to its large number of gay-owned homes and businesses.
Sacramento has a handful of gay bars, enough to keep club hopping fans happy for a few days. Many of these places are in Lavender Heights, near gay-friendly cafes and restaurants. Some notable Sacramento gay nightlife options include Badlands, Caras, Video Bar Depot, and Bolt (for leather lovers). Among the many excellent restaurants in the city, some of the favorites in the GLBT community include Ernesto’s (excellent Mexican food), Paesanos (gourmet pizzas and Italian food), and Lucca (superb and inventive contemporary food), and that’s just to name a handful. .
The city also boasts some excellent GLBT-friendly accommodations, the most distinguished being the luxurious Inn at Parkside.
